Research
Hormonal
Historical weight-loss drugs (Thyroid hormones, DNP, Amphetamines) failed due to narrow therapeutic windows and severe adverse effects, despite some efficacy.
Historical weight-loss drugs like DNP, thyroid extracts, and amphetamines were largely withdrawn or restricted due to severe side effects (cataracts, heart issues, addiction) and limited efficacy (<10% weight loss). Their failure highlights the need for safer, more effective modern therapies like polyagonists.
GoodRefutesHIGH confidence
Unfortunately, when used as a single hormone therapy, most of these drugs are underwhelming in their efficacy or safety, and placebo-subtracted weight loss attributed to such therapy is typically not more than 10%. ... Many weight-lowering pharmacotherapies that were initially approved for treatment of obesity were subsequently withdrawn as safety concerns emerged to dominate the pharmacological benefits.
Why this rating
Based on historical clinical reports and regulatory history cited in the review.
Source
Anti-Obesity Therapy: from Rainbow Pills to Polyagonists
Timo D. Müller et al. · Pharmacological Reviews · 2018
DOI 10.1124/pr.117.014803
narrative_reviewCited 188×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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